Trying For Number Two
by Glimare
Summary: One Shot: Slade decides to talk to Jason into an apprenticeship. Not gonna happen. Note: characters are OOC. Still feeling them out when written


**Disclaimer:** if I owned Batman, Slade would have tried to go after every Robin, and have a different result for each.

Seriously, I have no idea if Jason and Slade have a history. I just thought that crazy red hood jason would start shooting if he ever saw him. So I thought I'd make a quick story of it. Enjoy! Oh this is a cross between the Slade in the Teen Titans TV series and what I've read in his history online. Tell me if I'm wrong.

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><p><strong>Trying For Number Two<strong>

There he was, the second one the dark knight trained all those years ago. The one who suffered and died at the hands of the Joker. The one who came back from the dead crazy, killing criminals around Gotham. The one his 'family' called the rogue and the rest of the world called Red Hood. He though only saw an opportunity.

If the first one, the Golden Boy, wouldn't work for him, maybe the second one, Batman's greatest failure, would.

"Warm night."

As soon as the words left his mouth, a shot was fired at his feet. The man wasn't even looking at him. "One more step and the next one goes through your knee."

Ruthless. Gun toting. Impressive indeed. The intruder stopped still. "Understood."

"What do you want ugly?" Jason turned his head to see who his visitor was, his face well hidden behind his helmet. Underneath it, his face changed from alarmed annoyance to curiosity. And the visitor wouldn't blame him. If the lad had any of his old connections or cared about his first predecessor's trials, he'd know who he was. New connections could even tell him.

He grinned behind his own mask. "Many things. But tonight, merely an introduction. Perhaps you've heard of me. I am—"

"Deathstroke the terminator, Slade Wilson, mercenary hit-man, sometimes crime lord." Red Hood stood up and away from the building's edge, turning to face the man completely. "Yeah I've heard of you. Kinda hard not to when every other Titan I run into curses your name."

"Much can be said the same about you," Slade jibbed. He had to make a connection with this boy first. With the first Robin he simply pointed out their similarities. He felt he could find more of them with this young man.

Jason cocked his head to the side then shook it. "Nah not really. I don't go hunting after them for stupid reasons. They can actually be quite fun to talk to when the bird boys aren't ordering them around. Now get off my roof."

The mercenary blinked. He did not anticipate impatient hostility quite so soon. "Momentarily. I have a proposition for you."

"Not interested." Red Hood raised his gun to eye level, staying near the edge of the roof and far enough from Slade so the man couldn't disarm him in an instant.

"I haven't even told you what it is," Slade countered. This was a strange turn of events. He was certain Red Hood would at least listen to a business proposition. After all, he didn't have unlimited funding.

"Too bad. Still not interested." He waved him towards the far edge of the rooftop with his gun. "Get off my roof."

"But this will profit us both beyond—"

"You're a solo act mercenary," Jason stated flatly, annoyance gaining ground in his voice. "Why would you offer me anything?"

"Because you would enjoy it," he tried. "The payoff is more than enough—"

"Good luck fightin' the Bat-clan then." He pointed his gun skyward. "I'm done with that."

"Pardon?" Slade raised an eyebrow behind his mask. This was something new.

"You heard me. I'm done! Skippin' town, giving up on Gotham entirely. If those wackjobs wanna try and save a dyin' city, let 'em. I'm not gonna try for it anymore. Besides," Jason's voice trailed off, becoming thoughtful. "Not everything between us was bad. So I'm gonna make things easier on everyone and move on."

This was an unseen precedent. Slade felt the young man's anger towards his old comrades would help drive him to his side. Looks like it might not work. "I see. So vengeance no longer interests you. Not even against—"

"That clown's my problem," he retorted quickly, his bite returning. "Not yours. I see him, he's dead. Clown knows that, so he better stay the hell away from me."

"But if he leaves Gotham—"

"Still not your problem." Jason's glare through the helmet would have given the Bat a run for his money, but Slade couldn't see it. Only sense the deadly intensity coming towards him. "You've got nothin' to offer me."

"Oh but I do." Slade gave his most convincing smile, though still hidden behind his own mask. "I have connections like you wouldn't believe."

"I make my own."

"Ah, but some can only be made through introduction," he tried to convince him smoothly.

"Been there, done that." The annoyed tone returning to Jason's voice. "Ever heard of Talia Al Ghul? Can't get much higher than that for first timers.

"Besides, Bats have a way of findin' the seediest people when we want to." The grin in his voice couldn't be ignored. His tone was getting annoyingly familiar.

Slade paused a moment before continuing. "There is also much I can teach you."

"Guns, explosives, robotics, hackin', martial arts, killin', trackin' people, I think I've got that covered." Jason waved the gun pointed at him once again. "Anythin' else before you take a swan dive?"

The assassin's eye narrowed. "Thought of everything haven't you. I see tactics were also part of your earlier training."

"You'd be surprised what I've learned." Venom entered his voice now. "So get lost."

Slade stayed still for a moment longer, thinking silently. It was a staring match for a good minute, neither of them moving a muscle. Finally the older man spoke. "Tell me, what made you refuse my offer so quickly?"

Another moment past before the former Robin answered. "I heard about what you did to Dickiebird. And what you tried on the demon. Bet you've got somethin' planned for the replacement too. What, only interested in little birds once they're out of sight of the big man?

"Oh, then there's what you did to each of your actual kids. Seriously, you get one killed out right tryin' to make him like you, get another's vocal cords cut then goes crazy tryin' to fight you, and you make your daughter cut out her own eye and expose her to kryoptonite poisonin' just to prove her loyalty to you. You're really screwy."

He gave a short huff of a laugh. "Bat's idea of provin' loyalty was gettin' us to wear a dress in public. And be nice and quiet in a suit at parties. I say between his record of apparent apathy and borderline neglect, and yours of outright abuse and manipulation, I'll go with Bats."

Deathstroke stood still a moment longer, his eye narrowing dangerously. Looked like this Robin was just like the others: needlessly loyal to a flying rodent, neglecting their fullest potential. Pity.

Unfortunately, due to this one's instability, he couldn't be left alive. He could become competition.

It was only a second later when both their guns were out and they started firing. Since Jason already had one out, Slade took a few rounds before being able to fire a shot. Red Hood took two in his armor before dropping off the roof to the ledge below, missing the rest of the assassin's clip. Slade charged forward to see if he could finish the job, only to see a modified batarang flying towards him. When he dodged it, Jason grabbed his ankle and pulled him off the roof, quickly firing three more shots at point blank. Being forced to the ground, the world's greatest tactician lost his gun and his breath. A quick kick into the man's temple knocked him out cold.

Jason smirked under his helmet smugly. He just beat the famous Deathstroke. Course the man had underestimated him from the beginning, didn't know a thing about the area, and was getting on in years, but this was still worthy street cred. Next time they met, he'd just shoot the guy.

Yeah he wasn't dead. If killing him were that easy, his daughter Rose would have done it years ago. Nice girl, if you got past the assassin like tendencies. Plus a corpse in Gotham isn't how he wanted to leave it. It'd only prove to the others he belonged in Arkham.

Slowly he took off his helmet and put away his guns, still watching the still, bleeding assassin. That guy was gonna have one hell of a story later. Jason grinned as he took out his cell phone and took a picture. Then he pulled up a number on his contacts before turning away and heading out.

"Hey Dickhead! Guess what! Next time I'm in town, you owe me dinner."

END

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><p>AN: Slade really is an idiot with kids isn't he. A few questions if anyone feels like answering. I know Slade and Dick have a long history, and I know when he's Batman Talia and Slade make Damian his puppet for a bit, but what's the history between Slade and the rest of the Robins? I don't think there is one with him and Jason, but Tim's been around for a while and has fought Slade. I know Tim (and the titans in general) don't like him, but are any of the other Robins personally against Slade as much as Dick is? Just a question.

Yeah, I just wanted to end it with jason shooting slade, walking away, and telling Dick to buy him dinner. i thought it was appropriate. =D


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